Website - Do I really need one?

It really depends on whether you want a personal or a professional business website. If your answer is the later Ė then question you should be asking yourself is ďcan I afford not having a company websites?Ē

Types of business website

Brochure websites tend to be sites that provide information about a companyís products, services, history and contact information etc. Typically, information you normally find in a corporate brochure. Ecommerce sites are ones that allow you to purchase products or services online.

Without a website, you are missing out on a very import revenue stream. Most prospects will visit your website to find out who you are and what you do before giving you a call. It also presents and reinforces your branding. Generally, visiting your site gives the user an impression of your company and first impressions really does count.

Boost your bottom line

So if you havenít got an online presence, you are just not in the running! Whilst your potential prospects and customers are on the net and cant find your website, how easy would it be for them to end up on your competitors website? Try it for yourself, enter keywords into a search engine and see what comes up. Unlike a print brochure that can be thrown away as soon as itís delivered, websites become a permanent brochure on the desk of your potential prospect or customer 24/7, just a few clicks away.

Back in the 90ís (yep that sounds strange, doesnít it?), it was a luxury to have a website and a most companies didnít have a site.

Websites had an air of mystery about them; most were crude text based pages without images or multimedia functionality. But now, some have full video and audio functionality with tailored content to meet the users needs. The Internet and websites have become completely indispensable in commerce. If you are running a professional business then thereís no excuse not to have one, with a range of design and cost to meet all tastes and budgets.

Creating an online web presence

There is a range of companies who provide template to bespoke websites, and deciding which agency to use can be a minefield. Template websites are sites that have a fixed design and structure. All you need to do is to add your logo, content and in some cases, you can change the predominant colour of the website to your brandís colour.

Template sites can be quite restrictive, however bespoke sites give you the flexibility for the site to be designed, and graphic design elements to be created to your exact requirements. You can get a bespoke website for a few hundred pound for a static site to several tens of thousands pounds for a depending on your requirements and types of functionality incorporated in the site.